The political pay cut in a sweeping ballot initiative written by the Michigan Democratic Party taps voter anger to deliver "Democratic control of state government" for the coming decade, an internal strategy memo says.

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland Thursday said it discovered details of the proposal and its origins on a UAW Web site and promptly posted the PowerPoint presentation on its Web site. The title of the presentation is "Government Reform Proposal: Changing
the rules of politics in Michigan to help Democrats."

Organizers of the Reform Michigan Government Now constitutional amendment package submitted nearly 490,000 signatures July 7 seeking a spot on the Nov. 4 ballot. If state elections officials determine enough valid signatures have been submitted, the measure then faces a stiff challenge in the courts by opponents including the Michigan Chamber of
Commerce.

Unpublicized for months, RMGN was generally believed to be the work of Democratic Party officials when details of it emerged in June. Spokeswoman for the group is Lansing strategist Dianne Byrum, the former Democratic leader in the House.

Paul Kersey, director of labor policy for the Mackinac Center, said the PowerPoint proposal was discovered on the Web site of UAW Region 1-C, based in Flint. It was gone from the UAW site Thursday afternoon. According to the document, the petition drive had a $1.4 million budget
with staff supervision provided by the Michigan Democratic Party.

Party Chair Mark Brewer once again declined to comment on his involvement in the proposal, but reiterated his support for it. Party spokeswoman Liz Kerr didn't contest the authenticity of the document. Democratic lawmakers who would receive a cut in pay next year, from $79,650 to $56,981, blasted the proposal. Sen. Ray Basham, D-Taylor, said his party was throwing legislators "under the bus."

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PROPOSAL

• The state Senate would drop from 38 members to 28. The House would drop from 110 members to 82.

• A nonpartisan commission would handle legislative redistricting instead of the Legislature.

• Pay would be reduced for lawmakers, judges, the governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and attorney general. Benefits would be cut or capped at the level allowed for civil service employees.

• The Michigan Supreme Court would be reduced from seven justices to five.

• The Michigan Court of Appeals would be downsized from 28 judges to 21. Ten judges would be added at the circuit court level.

• Lawmakers would have to wait at least two years to become lobbyists after leaving office.

• Lawmakers would have to disclose information about their finances.

• Post-election audits of election procedures would be required, as would paper trails for all voting systems.

• Lawmakers and statewide elected officials would have to disclose their income and assets.

• All voters could cast an absentee ballot for any reason.

In the Senate Democratic caucus, aides say, there is near uniform opposition to the proposal, including among African-American legislators who fear a loss of minority representation in the Legislature.

"We had no part in this," Basham said. "This is Mark Brewer and gang." The apparent Democratic Party origins of RMGN didn't surprise opponents, including Republicans who call the effort a sneak attack on state government.

"It's a blatant power grab and everybody knew where it was coming from," said Senate Majority Leader Michael Bishop, R-Rochester. "We're going to try and fight it for as hard and as long as we can."

He said the first effort would be to prevent it from reaching the ballot through a court challenge that would argue the proposal is poorly written and unconstitutionally broad.

Byrum said "I would hope that we have a debate on the proposal because that's what the taxpayers of Michigan want. The forces of the status quo don't want that debate to occur."

One slide in the PowerPoint document is titled: "The path to change the political rules: Streamline state government."

It said using the "public's very negative mood" in 2008 could obtain voter approval for "structural obstacles to Democratic control of state government in 2012-2021."

That negative mood is tapped in the proposal by reversing unpopular 2000 pay raises that boosted legislative salaries by about 40 percent. The measure also cuts by 25 percent the pay for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and secretary of state. Judicial pay would be
cut by 15 percent.

The Legislature, moreover, would be sliced by 38 seats in both chambers effective for the 2010 election.

Democrats believe that gaining and holding long-term political control in Michigan rests on drawing new legislative districts, which would occur both in 2009 and shortly after completion of the 2010 census under the proposal. Those new lines would be drawn not by the Legislature, but by a new nine-member redistricting panel divided along party lines and chaired by an independent.

The proposal would reduce the size of the Michigan Supreme Court from seven justices to five, tossing from the bench two justices initially appointed by GOP Gov. John Engler. Six Republican judges on the Michigan Court of Appeals would lose their jobs as well.

Byrum has consistently declined to say which groups are financing the proposal, but Democratic aides say it is largely backed by organized labor. Campaign finance statements aren't due until 35 days after the signatures are certified by the State Board of Canvassers.

Not all of organized labor is on board.

"We have serious concerns about the legal issues surrounding this initiative," said Ed Sarpolus, government affairs director for the Michigan Education Association. "We are continuing to review the proposal and engage in conversations with those who stand for and
against its enactment."

Tom Shields, a Lansing consultant for a coalition of opponents, said Thursday: "We're going to take a look at the signatures and various legal arguments. We'll probably throw them all in the hopper to keep this off the ballot."